Sets out the procedures and requirements for special elections; implements a timetable for the special primary and special election, including the number of signatures required for the petition.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1770
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL, BING, KAVANAGH, GALEF, JEFFRIES,
CAMARA, PAULIN, DINOWITZ, LATIMER, REILLY, CAHILL, KELLNER -- Multi-
Sponsored by -- M. of A. GOTTFRIED, LANCMAN -- read once and referred
to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law and the public officers law, in
relation to creating a special primary election to take place prior to
a special election and mandating the governor to proclaim all special
elections within ten days of the vacancy
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 6-114 of the election law is amended to read as
2 follows:
3 § 6-114. Party nominations; special election. Party nominations for an
4 office to be filled at a special election shall be made [in the manner
5 prescribed by the rules of the party] at a special primary election
6 pursuant to section 6-161 of this article, at which the candidate
7 receiving the most votes shall be the nominee of the party.
8 § 2. The election law is amended by adding a new section 6-161 to read
9 as follows:
10 § 6-161. Special primary elections. 1. The special primary election
11 shall take place on the first Tuesday occurring at least thirty days but
12 no more than thirty-six days prior to the special election.
13 2. Designating petitions for a primary nomination shall be subjected
14 to the same form and rules set out in sections 6-132 and 6-134 of this
15 article. Designating petitions shall be filed within twelve days of the
16 date the governor proclaims the need for a special election.
17 3. Notwithstanding section 6-136 of this article, the required amount
18 of signatures for a designating petition, pursuant to this section,
19 shall be five hundred for a state senatorial district and two hundred
20 fifty for an assembly district.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01756-01-1
A. 1770 2
1 4. Petitions for independent nominations shall be filed within fifteen
2 days of the date the governor proclaims the need for a special election.
3 Notwithstanding section 6-138 of this article, the required amount of
4 signatures for a designating petition, pursuant to this section, shall
5 be one thousand for a state senatorial district and five hundred for an
6 assembly district.
7 § 3. Subdivisions 1, 3 and 4 of section 42 of the public officers law,
8 subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 878 of the laws of 1946, subdivision
9 3 as amended by chapter 105 of the laws of 1943 and subdivision 4 as
10 amended by chapter 317 of the laws of 1954, are amended and a new subdi-
11 vision 4-b is added to read as follows:
12 1. A vacancy occurring before September twentieth of any year in any
13 office authorized to be filled at a general election, except in the
14 offices of governor [or], lieutenant-governor, state senator or member
15 of assembly, shall be filled at the general election held next thereaft-
16 er, unless otherwise provided by the constitution, or unless previously
17 filled at a special election.
18 3. Upon the failure to elect to any office, except that of governor or
19 lieutenant-governor, at a general or special election, at which such
20 office is authorized to be filled, or upon the death or disqualification
21 of a person elected to office before the commencement of his official
22 term, or upon the occurrence of a vacancy in any elective office which
23 cannot be filled by appointment for a period extending to or beyond the
24 next general election at which a person may be elected thereto, the
25 governor [may in his discretion] shall make a proclamation within ten
26 days of the vacancy of a special election to fill such office, specify-
27 ing the district or county in which the election is to be held, and the
28 day thereof, which shall be [not less than thirty nor more than forty]
29 ninety days or on the first Tuesday following the ninety days from the
30 date of the proclamation.
31 4. A special election shall not be held to fill a vacancy in the
32 office of a representative in congress unless such vacancy occurs on or
33 before the first day of July of the last year of the term of office, or
34 unless it occurs thereafter and a special session of congress is called
35 to meet before the next general election, or be called after September
36 nineteenth of such year[; nor to fill a vacancy in the office of state
37 senator or in the office of member of assembly, unless the vacancy
38 occurs before the first day of April of the last year of the term of
39 office, or unless the vacancy occurs in either such office of senator or
40 member of assembly after such first day of April and a special session
41 of the legislature be called to meet between such first day of April and
42 the next general election or be called after September nineteenth in
43 such year]. If a special election to fill an office shall not be held as
44 required by law, the office shall be filled at the next general
45 election.
46 4-b. If a vacancy occurs in the office of state senator or in the
47 office of member of assembly between one hundred eighty and ninety days
48 prior to an annual primary election or if a vacancy occurs between one
49 hundred eighty and ninety days prior to a general election, the special
50 election shall be held on the day of the annual primary election or
51 general election respectively, with the special primary election to be
52 held on the first Tuesday occurring at least thirty days but no more
53 than thirty-six days prior to the special election.
54 § 4. If any section of this act or any part thereof shall be adjudged
55 by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment
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1 shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder or any other
2 section or part thereof.
3 § 5. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
4 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
